Guides @ UF: EGN 4951 &amp; EGN 4952: Integrated Product and Process Design: Keyword Searching

Brainstorm Your Keywords

Patents tend to be awarded for function rather than for application. Use these strategies to help develop a list of potential keywords to use in your search:

Think about:

* What does the invention do -- function and purpose?

* What is the outcome or result? What problem does it solve?

* How does it work?

* What is it composed of? What materials are used?

Start Searching

Once you have brainstormed some keywords based on your products' purpose, composition and use you are ready to start!

If you're just looking for ideas, sample patents are easy to find.

Use The Lens or USPTO's Inventor Search Assistant^beta or Google Patents to try your keywords.

You can also use the Lens's Structured Search or Google's Advanced Patent Search to limit to:

inventor (individuals)
assignee/owner (company/institution)
range of years
countries where the patent was filed
etc.

Sometimes, a brand name is used in a patent, such as the Roomba, which is a "robot obstacle detection system."

When you find patents similar to your concept, make note of their assigned classification numbers, which look like these.

Places to Search

Google Patents - Advanced Search
Google Patents covers the entire collection of granted patents and published patent applications from the USPTO, EPO, and WIPO. US patent documents date back to 1790, EPO and WIPO to 1978.
Patent Lens - Structured Search
Searches patents from 95 jurisdictions, drawing from US (USPTO), European (EPO), Australian (AU), and World (WIPO) patents. The structured search allows you to create search strings and combine search concepts.
PatentScope
Using PATENTSCOPE you can search international patent documents including published international patent applications (PCT).
Espacenet
Offers free access to information about inventions and technical developments from 1782-present for European countries as well as other countries. Full-text access varies based on country.
USPTO's Patent Public Search tool
This online platform provides the public access to search tools used by patent examiners.
USPTO's Inventor Search Assistant (Beta)
Simpler interface to search USPTO content.

Looking for Chemical Patents?

Try one of these specialized tools:

SciFinder-n This link opens in a new window
- This link opens in a new window
Chemistry database.

Orange Book
FDA's database of drug patent information.

EGN 4951 & EGN 4952: Integrated Product and Process Design

Brainstorm Your Keywords

Patents tend to be awarded for function rather than for application. Use these strategies to help develop a list of potential keywords to use in your search:

Think about:

* What does the invention do -- function and purpose?

* What is the outcome or result? What problem does it solve?

* How does it work?

* What is it composed of? What materials are used?

Start Searching

Once you have brainstormed some keywords based on your products' purpose, composition and use you are ready to start!

If you're just looking for ideas, sample patents are easy to find.

Use The Lens or USPTO's Inventor Search Assistant^beta or Google Patents to try your keywords.

You can also use the Lens's Structured Search or Google's Advanced Patent Search to limit to:

inventor (individuals)

assignee/owner (company/institution)

range of years

countries where the patent was filed

etc.

Sometimes, a brand name is used in a patent, such as the Roomba, which is a "robot obstacle detection system."

When you find patents similar to your concept, make note of their assigned classification numbers, which look like these.

Places to Search

Looking for Chemical Patents?

Try one of these specialized tools:

EGN 4951 & EGN 4952: Integrated Product and Process Design

Brainstorm Your Keywords

Patents tend to be awarded for function rather than for application. Use these strategies to help develop a list of potential keywords to use in your search:

Think about:

* What does the invention do -- function and purpose?

* What is the outcome or result? What problem does it solve?

* How does it work?

* What is it composed of? What materials are used?

Start Searching

Once you have brainstormed some keywords based on your products' purpose, composition and use you are ready to start!

If you're just looking for ideas, sample patents are easy to find.

Use The Lens or USPTO's Inventor Search Assistantbeta or Google Patents to try your keywords.

You can also use the Lens's Structured Search or Google's Advanced Patent Search to limit to:

inventor (individuals)

assignee/owner (company/institution)

range of years

countries where the patent was filed

etc.

Sometimes, a brand name is used in a patent, such as the Roomba, which is a "robot obstacle detection system."

When you find patents similar to your concept, make note of their assigned classification numbers, which look like these.

Places to Search

Looking for Chemical Patents?

Try one of these specialized tools:

Use The Lens or USPTO's Inventor Search Assistant^beta or Google Patents to try your keywords.